Indiana's Exhibition History With Louisville Continues Friday, Concludes Preseason

Indiana soccer has started the preseason 2-0. The team's final exhibition is Friday night against Louisville at Bill Armstrong Stadium. The two teams last met in the regular season in 2016, an Indiana victory, but have since played only exhibitions. The saga continues.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana's third and final exhibition is Friday night at Bill Armstrong Stadium, exactly one week following the program's preseason-opening 1-0 win over Wright State in 120 minutes. Fittingly, Louisville is Indiana's last preseason foe. It’s been that way for the past three seasons.

In Indiana's last exhibition of the fall 2021 preseason, the Hoosiers were down 3-2 at halftime to the Cardinals at home, but they stormed back to win 5-4. The program's last exhibition of the 2022 preseason was the contrary. Indiana went up 1-0 on the road at Louisville, then allowed three unanswered goals and lost 3-1.

Sure, the results don’t count, but 2023 can be viewed as the three-year rubber match to this prolonged border-state scrimmage duel. When looking at archived stories on the IU Athletics website, however, the Indiana-Louisville exhibition series dates back further to when they last met in the regular season, a 2-1 Indiana victory in 2016. 

Indiana later won the preseason matchup in 2017, then Louisville returned the favor in the 2018 and 2019. The two teams didn't meet in the 2020 preseason or regular season, which was abnormally played in spring 2021 due to COVID-19. The exhibitions resumed in the fall of 2021, which marked the above-mentioned 5-4 thriller. 

To tally, Louisville has won three exhibitions, while Indiana has won two. But include Indiana's most recent 4-0 shutout win over the Cardinals this past spring, and the series is tied 3-3. Thus, Friday will decide the best-of-seven of the now six-year saga. 

But Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley wants to realign the matchup when it counts. 

"Right now, we've been working to get Louisville on the regular season," Yeagley said Tuesday, after Indiana's 3-1 scrimmage win. "It's a great last game in preseason. You're always looking for a game that you feel like could be a tournament team. It's just the way it's played out. We will try to get them on the regular season schedule. No doubt." 

Since Indiana's 2016 regular-season win, both the Hoosiers and Cardinals have contended for the NCAA Tournament every year, except when Louisville missed the 2020-21 tournament. This past NCAA tournament, Louisville lost 2-1 in double-overtime in the first round to Western Michigan, which advanced to the Sweet 16. 

Entering Indiana's final preseason tune-up with Louisville, the Hoosiers' starting roster already seems to be set through two scrimmages, which points to the program's great depth and incoming talent despite losing four veterans from last season to the MLS SuperDraft – two of which first-round picks – and the MLS Next Pro League. 

Through Indiana's first two victories, the only position battle seems to be at left-back between freshmen Joel Demian and Alex Barger, and both have played well. Demian is coming off an injury and received his first minutes Tuesday night, while Barger started the preseason-opener before that and likewise got minutes Tuesday. 

Yeagley said Demian's natural position is left back, while Barger is listed at forward on the team's roster. That could explain why Barger already looks very comfortable playing up the sidelines in the 4-4-2 formation and serving crosses into the box. 

Though there aren't necessarily position battles up top since Indiana returns plenty of veteran attackers, players' spots may continue to rotate Friday night. Pesky freshman Collins Oduro, who scored his first collegiate goal Tuesday, is likely locked as one of the two strikers. But other combinations could be tested, like Tommy Mihalic. 

Mihalic started last Friday as one of the two outside midfield-wingers, but sophomore Luka Bezerra took that spot Tuesday. Yeagley said he wanted to see how the underclassman handled the role and was pleased with his performance. And, of course, Mihalic was outstanding subbing into that spot with one goal and two assists. 

Indiana's exhibition with Louisville in the best-of-seven will start at 8 p.m. ET Friday. Admission will be free at Bill Armstrong Stadium, and the two teams can be expected to play quarters totaling 100 minutes or more, like previous scrimmages this fall. 

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